Smoke-consuming furnace.



5w 0 9 l 7 A M D E T N E T A P RM I R R A H m. m A 2 w A.- 8 7 0 N SMOKE GONSUMING FURNACE.

APPLIOATION FILED OCT. 21. 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

, IN V E N TOR :70/03 Brownfizzz'a W/TNESSES ATTORNEYS No. 784,324. PATENTED MAR. 7, 1905.

J. B. HARRIS. I

SMOKE UONSUMING FURNACE.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 21. 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

' ATTORNEYS Patented March 7, 1905.

PATE T ()FFICE.

JOHN BROWVN HARRIS, OF NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE.

SMOKE-CONSUMING FURNACE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 784,324, dated March 7, 1905.

Application filed October 21, 1904. Serial No. 229,398.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN BROWN HARRIS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Nashville, in the county of Davidson and State of Tennessee, have invented a new and Improved Smoke-Consuming Furnace, of which the following-is afull, clear, and exact description.

The invention relates to smoke-consuming furnaces, such as shown and described in the Letters Patent of the United States No. 754,999, granted to me March 22, 1904.

The object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved smoke-consuming furnace arranged to cause a reduction of the volume of nitrogen in the fire-box by the introduction of minute jets of steam, to deflect the rising gases and smoke in the firebox, to bring the same near the air-inlet ports for mixture with the air drawn in by the action of the steam-jets, and to insure a more ready and complete combustion of the mixture.

The invention consists of novel features and parts and combinations of the same, as will be more fully described hereinafter and then pointed out in the claims.

A practical embodiment of the invention is represented in the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional elevation of the improvement on the line 1 1 of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a transverse section of the same on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a like view of the same on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the steamjet pipe, and Fig. 5 is a plan view of a modified form of the steam-jet pipe.

The boiler A is set in the usual manner in a brickwork B, containing a fire-box C, having a grate D, below which is arranged an ash-pit E, having in its floor a cemented water-pit E containing water, which in evaporating forms wet steam, drawn by the draft' up through the burning fuel, so as to be dissociated into its elements, taklng up carbon and forming water-gas and, in general, to aid in the combustion of all the gases. Access is had to the ash-pit E and to the fire-box G by suitable doors E and C. At the rear end of the fire-box C is arranged a bridge-wall F, having its top in inverted arch shape and spaced from the under side of the boiler A to form a combustion-chamber G, the rear end of which leads to the rear end of the boiler A for heated gases to pass in and through the lines of the boiler A in a forward direction and to finally pass into a stack A.

In the front upper portion of the lire-box C is arranged an air chamber H, formed by spaced concentric arches H and H extending from the side walls of the brickwork B, the top of the outer arch H being spaced from the under side of the boiler A to leave the latter unobstructed at this point, and thus maintain a full heating-surface of the boiler throughout the length thereof. The lower arch H extends above the door C, so as not to obstruct the entrance of the fire-box C. In the air-chamber H are arranged air-retarding devices, preferably in the shape of checkerbricks H", to retard the air in the said chamber H to insure heating thereof to a high degree previous to the heated air passing into the fire-box above the burning fuel on the grate .D. The inner end of the upper arch H projects a distance beyond the inner end of the lower arch H, so that the heated air passing from the chamber H at the inner open end is guided toward the combastion-chamber G, as will be readily understood by reference to the arrow shown in Fig. 1.

The sides of the air-chamber H, at the front end thereof, are connected with air-ducts 1, extending rearwardly in the side walls of the brickwork B to lead to the outer air at the back wall of the brickwork, and the rear ends of the said ducts l are adapted to be opened and closed by suitable hinged doors J, each connected by a chain J with a bell-crank levcr J fulcrumed on the top of the brickwork B and connected by a link J with another bellcrank lever, J arranged on the front of the brickwork B, and this bell-crank lever J" is provided with a depending handled chain or rope J under the control of the operator.

Thus upon pulling the chains J 5 the doors J l position to allow atmospheric airto pass into are swung open, so as to allow air to pass through the ducts I into the heating-chamber H and from the latter into the fire-box, it being understood that the air during its passage through the ducts I receives a preliminary heating, and this heated air is heated to a very high degree in the chamber H before it passes into the fire-box C.

In the chamber H extends a transverse stem-jet pipe H, connected by a valved pipe H with the steam-dome A of the boiler or other source of steamsupply.- The pipe H is arched to follow the contour of the chamber H, and the said pipe is provided on its forward portion with perforations for the escape of the steam in minute jets. The pipe H is in transverse alinement with the entrances of the air-ducts I, so that the steam passing in jets into the chamber H also serves to draw in air through the air-ducts I. The steam-jet pipe H* may be located outside of the chamber H, and in this case the said pipe H* is provided with branch pipes H (see Fig. 5,) extending into the chamber H to discharge steam into the latter in a forward direction, the same as the perforated pipe H*, previously mentioned.

A second air-chamber K is formed in the arched wall F, and this chamber leads to the inverted arched top of the bridge-wall, and on this top are arranged longitudinally-extending bricks K, spaced apart to form openings K for the air to pass from the chamber K through the said openings into the combustion-chamber G. (See Fig. 3.) To the bottom of the chamber K leads a door K from the ash-pit E for the convenient removal of ashes and cinders that mayfall into the chamber K through the openings K From the uppermost bricks K extend bafiie-plates K extending from the side walls of the brickwork to the sides of the boilerA and to the top of the chamber G, so that the smoke and gases are deflected downwardly to pass under the bafiies to be set aflame by the hot air from the openings K leading from the chamber K. Into the chamber K also open the forward ends of air-ducts L, built on the inner face of the side walls of the brickwork B, and the rear ends of the said ductsL connect by branch ducts L in the back wall of the brickwork B with ducts L extending forwardly in the side walls of the said brickwork B. The forward ends of the ducts L are adapted to be opened and closed by doors N, similar to the doors J, and under the control of the operator by the employment of chains or ropes N, each of which is attached at one end to a corresponding door and then extends upward over a pulley N journaled on the top of the brickwork B. The depending front end of the chain or rope N is adapted to be taken hold of by the operator, so that the latter on pulling the rope swings the corresponding door N into an open the front end of the duct L to travel rearward] y therein and to finall y pass by the branch duct L into the duct L to finally reach the air-chamber K in the bridge-wall F. It will be, seen that the. air in its rearward and forward passage in the ducts L L L receives a preliminary heating and a final heating to a high degree in the chamber K to pass in this condition through the openings K into the combustion-chamber G. In the latter are arranged checker-bricks O to somewhat retard the rearward flow of the smoke and gases and to cause a thorough intermingling of the air with the gases to insure complete combustion. As indicated in Fig. 1,at the front end the checkerbricks O are set in step form, so that the air and gas are caused to travel in an upward direction toward the under side of the boiler A to thoroughly heat the same.

From the foregoing it will be seen that when the fuel is burning on the grate D and the doors J and N are opened then air passes through the ducts I and L L L into the airchambers H and K. The air in the chamber H is heated and mixed with the steam issuing in jets from the pipe H and this mixture of heated air and steam passes directly into the smoke and gases arising from the burning fuel on the grate D, so as to insure a complete combustion of the gases and a reduction of the smoke. The mixture in passing over the bridge-wall comes in contact with a fresh supply of highly-heated air from the chamber K, and this air is thoroughly mixed with the smoke and gases in the combustion-chamber G, especially by the aid of the checker-bricks O, to insure a complete combustion previous to the heated gases leaving the combustionchamber and passing through the boiler A into the smoke-stack A.

It is understood that by the use of steam in the chamber H the air is readily drawn into the chamber H from the ducts L, and the steam the front thereof, to commingle with the heated air therein before the passing of this air to the combustion-chamber.

2. A smoke-consuming furnace, comprising a fire-box, an independent air-chamber at the front of the furnace and upper part of the tirebox, the bottom of which forms the top of said fire-box, means for delivering heated air to 4 In testimonywhereofIhavesignedmyname said air-chamber, and thence to the combusto th1s specificatlon in the presence of two subtion-oharnber Within the fire-box, and a plpe scrlblng Witnesses.

connecting with asource of steam and having JOHN BROWN HARRIS. 5 a transverse perforated pipe for introducing WVitnesses:

steam to the air-chamber at the front thereof, W. E. METZGER,

as and for the purpose set forth. E. C. METZGER. 

